Wasting a winner. Back to basics. The slogan is a sure-fire political winner. When applied to education by a politician it never fails to have the opinion polls showing strong support. And so it is this week with the Essential Report putting approval for Labor’s national curriculum proposal at 85%.

Now those people polled in this survey were told in the question of the Government’s plans. “The Rudd Government proposes to introduce a national curriculum from next year where every student from prep to year 10 will learn from the same curriculum in English, maths, history and science,” the question read. Thus informed the respondents were asked: “Do you approve or disapprove of the Government’s proposal for a national curriculum?” The full results are on the Crikey website in the Pollytics blog but only 7% disapproved which is about as conclusive as you get in a poll.

But what the poll does not tell us is the proportion of Australians who have actually yet heard of the introduction of the national curriculum which Labor can sell as being a back to basics, common-sense approach to education. It takes time for things to filter through into the consciousness of the vast majority and Labor spent very little time drumming home the message that the Essential Report sample responded to so favourably.

Within a couple of days that perfectly good saleswoman Julia Gillard was replaced on the television screens by her Health Minister colleague Nicola Roxon and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd talking about another potentially vote winning proposal – increasing federal responsibility for health and hospitals.

It does seem to have been quite a waste of a decided advantage for Labor that was made even more pronounced by the stupidity of the Liberal Education shadow minister Christopher Pyne in automatically criticising aspects of the new curriculum. Another opportunity should be found for a re-launch without cutting short the promotion that now needs to be given to health less it too is not given the chance it deserves to put Labor comfortably back on the front foot.

Two in a week. Essential Report, like AC Nielsen earlier this week and Morgan 10 days ago, shows Labor still with a comfortable lead in the two party preferred vote. I expect Newspoll next Tuesday to move in the same direction and show an improvement by Labor. That things are not going as well for the Opposition as The Australian would have us believe is the only explanation for the risk taking behaviour of Tony Abbott. The Opposition Leader is clearly not interested in playing things safe. As he indicated on that 60 Minutes interview, his children know that every day that goes by brings an exit to politics closer.

Falling in love again. Imre Salusinszky writing in The Australian this morning: “Kristina Keneally — the Premier of NSW and my future second wife — wrote to Rudd last week …”

Funiculì, Funiculà. In my youth we used to climb Mount Wellington. Sure Labor Premier Albert Ogilvie had showed his Keynesian credentials by having the unemployed build a road to the top during the Depression but driving up the mountain was for wimps not for scouts of the 7th Hobart Cathedral pack. Alas no more, it seems.

Albert’s grand daughter Madeleine is trying to outdo the old fellow with a proposal that there be a funicular railway up the side of the mountain — whatever a funicular railway is. I thought that the funiculà of the song was a cable car which is what the Liberals are proposing as part of their election policies.

100310mtwellington

The Greens, I note, reckon that the road is enough but I think they are squibbing it. They should be advocating the unmaking of that Ogilvie highway and allowing a return of a pristine mountain with the removal of those horrid television and telecommunications towers at the top as well.

A spin too far. Surely political double speak has now gone to far. A tax is no longer a tax but, in the words of Sharman Stone MP — an investment in human capital.